Monday, February 24, 2014

I don't know if you've been paying attention to all the stuff going on in the Ukraine, but I have.

In case you skipped those headlines, the Ukrainians just had a coup. They protested in the streets, the government's anti-riot police shot and killed several of the demonstrators, so the people set up more barricades, got more people out in the streets, set a bunch of stuff on fire to make a lot of black smoke so it would be harder for the snipers to pick them off, threw rocks and Molotov cocktails, etc.

Eventually, in spite of more people being killed (est. 80+), they overran the police and filled the government buildings and took over. The president, Yanukovych, took off for parts unknown (he did make a video of himself saying he would not leave his country, right before he vanished), and now the regular people are trying to figure out how to run their country, how to put together a police force, and how to deal with the country's enormous financial problems.

There are so many pictures of the protestors and the chaos around Independence Square in Kyiv, it's hard to choose just one. Plus, a lot of the photos were taken by professional news sources, so even though this is an educational blog, maybe I'm not supposed to use any of them. But for now, at least, here's one.(Photo from Getty Images via CNN)

What were all those protests about, anyway?

What set the Ukrainians off was when their president backed out of a deal. Originally, Yanukovych was going to get a bunch of funding from the EU. This would have make the Ukraine more closely allied with Europe than with Russia. But at the last minute, he changed his mind, backed out of the deal with Europe, and instead signed a loan with Russia.

This protestor's sign pretty much sums up the dispute that triggered all the unrest.(Photo from City New Toronto)

In addition to that event, what's also been going on in the Ukraine for a really long time is a whole lot of corruption. Bribery, pay-offs, people in power taking public money and using it for their own private purposes. Any time there's lot of corruption like this, the country gets poorer as the wallets of a few powerful people only get fatter.

There's also been a lot of crime that's gone unpunished, other people have been jailed for disagreeing with Yanukovych, the country is rife with sex trafficking and a lot of women get forced into prostitution -- it's just not been a very happy place, and people in positions of authority have only made it worse instead of better.

OK, that's enough background to get you started. If you want more of the backstory -- I always do -- there's more at the end of this entry. But the thing that especially caught my eye today is Mezhyhirya. That's the home of the (now-ousted) Ukrainian president.

Mezhyhirya, the "home" of the Ukrainian president.(AP Photo by Efrem Lukatsky, from NY Daily News)

The other side of the house. And its outbuildings. And manicured paths. And covered bridge. Leading to more outbuildings.(Photo from Pravda blog)

A few details about this "home."

Depending on which side you enter from, it either has three stories or five stories

Inside are gilt trimmings, crystal chandeliers, and marble floors

Sits on 140 hectares of land (~340 acres), including private hunting grounds

Has its own 18-hole golf course

These are just a few features to get you started. There's more, much more.

One of the rooms inside Mezhyhirya. Note the marble floors, the multiple crystal chandeliers, the carved woodwork and gilt friezes, and the pockets in the ceiling for surveillance cameras.(Photo from Open Democracy Russia)

Each of these chandeliers cost an estimated $100,000. Meanwhile, 35% of Ukrainians live below the poverty line.(Photo from Pravda blog)

A view through a window of a staircase inside Mezhyhirya. Note the decorative marble on each step and the carved banisters.Photo by Pavel Podufalov, Kyiv Post)

Mezhyhirya is a compound, you might call it, about 12 miles outside of Kyiv.

It was originally a monastery built in the 14th century. It burned down in the 1780s, the night before empress Catherine II was going to see it. It was rebuilt, turned into a ceramics factory, changed back into a monastery for women.

Mezhyhirya in the early 20th century, after it had been rebuilt and turned into a monastery again.(Photo from Wikipedia)

During the Bolshevik Revolution, the Bolsheviks appropriated Mezhyhirya, took lots of photos of it, and then demolished it. The only thing left of the monastery is a water well.

A two-story home was built there, and the home and the land remained in government control. During Soviet rule, top communist leaders were given access to a "dacha" -- a small villa in the country. Mezhyhirya was one of these dachas.

After the Ukraine gained its independence from Russia, Mezhyhirya was owned by the Ukrainian government. The two-story dacha was used to accommodate foreign delegations to the Ukraine.

In 2002, when Viktor Yanukovych was appointed Prime Minister, he decided he wanted to live at Mezhyhirya. At that time, he rented it. Fair enough.

This area is industrialized and has a relatively high population of Russians.

Yanukovych is not Ukrainian but Russian (mother) and Polish-Belarussian (father).

When he was 17, he was sentenced to 3 years in jail for robbery and assault. He pled guilty. He later tried to have this information removed from official records.

Yanukovych lost his position as Prime Minister when his government lost power. But then his party came back again, and he also came back as Prime Minister and later became President. This time, instead of renting Mezhyhirya, he took it over. "Privatized" it would be the sanitized way of saying that.

"Payment" for the villa included a handful of buildings in Kyiv, which were in such disrepair that many have fallen down of their own accord.

The purchase of the villa was made -- without anything like competitive bids or indeed input from anyone -- by a company based in Donetsk (Yanukovych's home town). That company went bankrupt shortly thereafter.

Current ownership of Mezhyhirya is hard to pin down. Though the records say that it's now owned by a company called Tantalit (which has zero employees), but that is owned by another company (which has zero employees), and so on through the shell game of companies until you get to this:

British Blythe (Europe) Ltd, 29 Harley Street, London. A "letterbox" company designed to hide true ownership. Apparently the UK is a fabulous place to set up shell companies.(Photo from Pravda blog)

Someone who investigated the torturous paper trail of Mezhyhirya ownership did discover one actual person named in the paperwork, an attorney named Pavlo Lytovchenko.

Pavlo Lytovchenko, the man behind the curtain. Looks like James Spader in his younger years, doesn't he?(Photo from Pravda blog)

A few things about Lytovchenko:

Like Yanukovych, he's from Donetsk

CEO and top employee of two companies owned by Yanukovych's brother

Has been Yanukovych's son's tax attorney

Yanukovych's son was quoted as saying Lytovchenko is "the man who takes care of certain legal matters."

One blogger surmised that this guy is therefore the "consigliere" to the Yanukovych family. You know, like Tom Hagen.

Leather golf bags, personalized not with initials, but with the whole honkin' name. Golf clubs are also personalized, with a crest engraved on the bottom.(Reuters, via Business Insider)

Helipad and hangar for helicopters. Presumably it was from here than Yanukovych left at 2 a.m. on Feb. 22 when he abandoned his post for parts unknown. Rumor has it he is somewhere in Donetsk. [Update: he did go to Donetsk, tried to fly out of there but was hindered. Now he is supposedly somewhere in Sevastopol (see below).](Reuters, via Globe and Mail)

Ukrainians are saying they want to keep Mezhyhirya as it is and turn it into a Museum of Corruption.

For the moment, they're just happy to have this place in the hands of the people again. (Getty, via Washington Post)

More Background on the protests & the Ukrainian situation in general, if you're interested

So why don't the Ukrainians want to get money from Russia? Wouldn't a big, (relatively) rich, powerful benefactor next door be helpful to them?

Long, long ago in the 10th and 11th centuries, the Ukraine (known then as Kyivan Rus) was the most powerful state in Europe. They got invaded by Mongols, they got in a big fight with the Poles -- they went through a lot of struggles but managed to maintain their autonomy.

In the late 18th century, they were conquered and absorbed into the Russian empire. They fought for their independence but did not succeed. After Russia became the Soviet Union, the Ukraine suffered mightily. In spite of their land being a metaphorical bread basket in terms of how much food it could produce, the Soviet government basically took all their food and taxed the heck out of whatever they had left, which forced the Ukrainians into devastating famine -- twice. Once in the 1920s and again in the 1930s.

"Famine" is a relatively nice word to describe all the terrible things Stalin did to the Ukrainian people, to destroy their leadership and independent spirit, and to completely impoverish them.(Photo and more information about the Holodomor from the United Human Rights Council)

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Ukraine established its independence, but due to all sorts of rampant corruption and rigged elections and continuing influence from Russia, things haven't gone very smoothly.

So even though the Ukraine is technically independent from Russia, there is still a lot of bad blood there, and a lot of Ukrainians don't want much to do with Russia. Today, the Ukraine is about 77% Ukrainian and 17% Russian.

By the way, Yanukovych's surprise deal with Russia was announced on
November 30 -- 4 days after the Ukraine remembers the forced famine
under Stalin. (It's called Ukrainian Genocide commemoration day.)

Why does Russia care about the Ukraine anyway?

It's true, the Ukraine is not as big an agricultural producer as it used to be, but now, it is a major supplier of steel, and it manufactures a lot of highly engineered products, including weapons. ICBMs, for example.

Russia also has a naval base in a Ukrainian sea town called Sevastopol (yes, Tolstoy lovers, that Sevastopol) in the region called Crimea (yes, lovers of Tennyson, site of the Charge of the Light Brigade). That naval base allows Russia access to the Black Sea and, from there through Istanbul, the Mediterranean.

The deal that the Ukraine's president signed with Russia was that Russia would continue to supply the Ukraine with gas at a reduced rate, and in return, the Ukraine would continue to export 75% of its steel and other engineered products to Russia, and Russia could keep its military base in Crimea.

Sevastopol on the Crimean peninsula, in the Ukraine -- a key sea port and naval base for Russia. By the way, it seems that the now-preferred method of spelling Kiev is Kyiv.(Map from Prof. Qualls' Course Blogs)

The bigger picture, showing how the Ukraine connects Russia with a whole lot of Europe and, via the Black Sea, the Mediterranean.(Map from Indistinct Union)

Sevastopol has a higher concentration of Russians than in other parts of the Ukraine, and since many of them feel more allied to Moscow, they are not as thrilled with the coup as people in Kyiv. So everyone's got their eyes on Sevastopol and the Crimea, waiting to see what the people who live there will do, and if Putin will send more troops or ships to his naval base there, in response to the recent government overthrow.

A few days ago, I opened a can of tuna fish (a brand I have never bought before) and it was really stinky. Usually a can of tuna has a fishy odor, but this was especially pungent. I rinsed the can-full under tap water for a while -- a practice I have recently developed with tuna, believing that doing so helps make the fish less stinky -- but even after doing that, there was a high level of stinkitude. I made my casserole and everything, washed out the can, washed my dishes. But still, hours later, even the next day, there was a distinct tuna stink coming out of the sink drain. Yeesh.

I'm not mentioning any names, but the brand of tuna that was especially stinky might have been Bumblebee.(Photo from Root Wellness)

So, why so stinky, tuna?

The answer is a little different depending on whether the fish lives in saltwater or freshwater.

Saltwater Fish

Shoot. This is too small for you to read it. Some of the fish on this list are snapper, sharks, mackerel, seatrout, bluefish, bonfish, and tuna.(Poster available for $6 from Roy's Field Guides)

Seawater is about 3% salt. The amount of salt that an animal can withstand in its cells is about 1%. Therefore, fish need to have some special ability to help them survive in an atmosphere that would otherwise kill them with its saltiness.

Actually, fish have all sorts of mechanisms to handle that extra salt. They have special enzymes in their gills to filter the salt out of their plasma, their kidneys filter out more of the salt that the gill enzymes missed, and then they get rid of still more salt by urinating up to a third of their body weight each day. That's a lot of fish pee in the ocean.

But they have another special salt-ridding mechanism, a compound called trimethylamine oxide (tri, or 3, + methyl which you know best from methane + amine, which means derived from ammonia), commonly abbreviated as TMAO. (no, not too much information + laughing my ass off, just TMAO.)

This compound is an osmolyte, which means it helps cells maintain a good balance of fluids. Osmolytes are like sponges, bringing fluid into and out of a cell as it needs more or less water.

In addition to being sponge-like, TMAO has an extra capability of essentially canceling out the effects of too much urea in a cell. Since fish are trying like mad to get rid of all that salt, and one of the ways they're doing it is by manufacturing insane amounts of urine, they've naturally got a bunch of urea in there. The TMAO helps the fish keep on living even with all that urea inside 'em.

TMAO is pretty fantastic, if you're a fish.

Once a fish is killed, however, the TMAO starts to break down. It loses its oxide and it becomes a straight-up amine. And amines, derivatives of ammonia, smell BAD.

Dead fish actually develop lots of amines, not just the trimethylamine, and those smell bad too: cadaverine (formed when lysine in muscles break down), and putriscine (formed when glutamine in skeletal muscles breaks down). If you recognize the words cadaver and putrid in those amine names, you are on the mark.

Fortunately for us, there is a solution (hah, chemistry pun). These amines are all basic -- I don't mean that as in "simple," I mean that in terms of their chemical pH.

To neutralize a base, you add its opposite on the pH scale, or an acid. What's a common acid people keep in their kitchens? Lemon juice! Thus, squirting lemon juice on dead fish turns those stinky amines into salts, and they don't stink anymore!

Ammonia and amines are at the bottom of the base/alkaline end. Lemon juice is up near the top. The two together are a match made in heav--well, at least, they result in an unstinky salt.(Image from the Science Company)

Yes, boys and girls, that's why we squirt lemon juice on fish. To de-stink the fish.

Vinegar or tomato juice, other common kitchen acids, will also work.

Rinsing the fish in tap water also helps. The water just plain washes off some of the TMA, so there's less of the stinky stuff to smell. So my idea of rinsing the tuna first was not all in my head; it really can help.

Freshwater Fish

You're already thinking that, since freshwater fish don't have to have all those special compounds and urinate like crazy to get rid of saltwater, freshwater fish won't stink so bad. You are correct. Mostly.

It's true, freshwater fish don't have the TMAO to become TMA after they die. But they can have other compounds that are stinky.

Freshwater fish tend to eat algae. Bottom-feeder fish (e.g., catfish, halibut, carp) especially eat a lot of blue-green algae. This algae gets turned into compounds (geosmin and 2-methylisoborneol) which build up in the muscle tissues of the fish.

Catfish, eating algae. People find a catfish or two to be useful in an aquarium.(Photo from Aquariums Life)

These two compounds have very noticeable earthy scents. It's geosmin you're smelling when it first starts to rain and the soil is disturbed. These two compounds often show up together, making a dirty, muddy smell. If your water has a muddy, dirty smell, chances are, it's got both these compounds in it.

These earthy, dirty-smelling compounds are why most people avoid bottom-feeder fish.

But these compounds are also bases. Which means adding an acid will neutralize them. Which means, again, lots of lemon juice will help.

By the way, many people have the idea that a bottom-feeder fish is one that eats poo. This is incorrect. Bottom-feeders skip the poo and eat the algae that grows at the bottom of their environment.

The Upshot

The fish are just doing what they need to do to get by. They didn't stink until they got killed.

The things that make them stinky are not harmful -- just rinse and add lemon juice.

However, if the smell is really overpowering, like, it really smells rotten, that is a sign that the fish has been sitting and decaying for too long. In that case, throw it out.

But most of the time, add lemon & enjoy.

Tuna with lemon slices and capers -- ooh, that's another good source of acid -- and pappardelle pasta.(Photo and recipe by Danielle Driscoll at findingsilverpennies.com)

Sunday, February 9, 2014

So about a week ago, I was out & about in the woods, as I am wont to do. It started snowing, which I of course enjoyed. Then the wind picked up and the snow got thicker. It didn't take long before my coat was coated with snow, my gloves, the front of my pants, and later when I took off my hat which is brown, it was white with thick snow. The trees were creaking and cracking in the wind, and the snow was coming down diagonally, stinging my cheeks.

But since I was wearing my super sweater, plus sweater tights under my pants, and various other warm and cozy garments, I was snug as a bug and digging the heck out of the crazy weather. Some guy and I crossed paths--one of the few people I saw out & about too--and he grinned and said, through the wind and snow, "Awesome, isn't it?" I grinned back and said, "Yeah, it is."

This squirrel and I were both digging the snowstorm.Photo by the Apple Lady

I did wonder, though, was I out in a blizzard? When does a regular old snowstorm cross the line into blizzard-land?

Crossing the bridge to blizzard land?(Photo by the Apple Lady)

For a snowstorm to be classified as a Blizzard, the following criteria must be true:

The wind must reach speeds over 35 mph for 3 hours or longer

Visibility must be less than 1/4 mile due to falling or blowing snow

Would you say this is visibility less than 1/4 mile? I really don't know.Photo by the Apple Lady

It's important to note that a storm could reach blizzard status without any falling snow. The wind could pick up loose snow from the ground and blow it around, to the point that visibility is reduced to less than 1/4 mile. That doesn't happen very often, but it is possible. Technically, that's called a Ground Blizzard.

In my particular snowstorm, even if the winds were as high as 35 mph (I did not have my anemometer on me so I don't know how fast the wind was blowing), and even if the visibility was that poor, I would have had to wait for 3 hours before calling it a blizzard.

I wasn't out in that weather for 3 hours, but for the amount of time I was in it, I'd say that storm at least qualified as a Snow Squall:

Heavy snow shower combined with gusty winds.

May be short in duration, but can still bring a significant amount of snowfall

Snow squalls are typical in the Great Lakes region.

At the very least, a snow squall.Photo by the Apple Lady

On the other extreme, a blizzard becomes a Severe Blizzard when

Winds are over 45 mph

Visibility is near 0

Temperatures drop to 10F or lower

Unlike in regular blizzards, duration is not a factor. I guess they figure, if things get that bad, it doesn't matter how long it lasts, it's just plain bad.

If you want to see what the effects of a severe blizzard look like, check out what recently happened in Slovenia, plus other parts of Europe:

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